@antipodean said in Has Hansen gone stale?:

2011 was cathartic for me. Going back to back in 2015 made me as happy as Test rugby could. If we do the three-peat in 2019, I'd suggest the RWC could be irrevocably damaged.

Let it burn

The lions strike back

@Hooroo said in Coronavirus memes:

@MiketheSnow said in Coronavirus memes:

My next door neighbour has just been diagnosed with COVID-19 and rushed to hospital.

He's been put on one of the new Dyson ventilators.

He's picking up nicely now.

Oh Man! I was typing a reply saying that is a good news story and then realised the thread I was in.

You almost got sucked right in..... I'll get my coat

@NTA said in RWC: England v Australia (QF 1):

@canefan said in RWC: England v Australia (QF 1):

@NTA said in RWC: England v Australia (QF 1):

@nzzp said in RWC: England v Australia (QF 1):

Seriously, though, we talked about this with Henry as well. They will put systems in place to generate the players with attributes they need. Hansen's just done this wtih props - get mobile, or get gone. Simple.

It's about systems. We don't have any of note.

MacQueen and his team came together at just the right time and it took more than a year to get them pointed in the same direction

Was McKenzie on track before he fiddled and got caught?

Hard to say. From all reports, he had his favorites and would stick with them regardless.

Maybe his attitude was better (or better expressed) than Cheika. But look at that tweet from Quade - does that look like the culture was of a high standard when that guy is your first choice?

Genia's got an attitude problem as well. Many in Australia will refuse to countenance that.

While the Reds were winning, nobody cared

Some of the bad eggs, like Genia, are gone now anyway. You guys need new up and comers and someone to change the culture. Wait, I have just the man

@virgil said in Alternative needed from the absolute crap of stuff.co.nz:

A lot of fathers here, just imagine your little girl brings home her new boyfriend to show you. In walks that fat fuck, do you reach for the machete you have stashed in the shed or run next door to grab your neighbours .22 ?

I think you'll need a .303

TSF is like an island in a sea of shit right now

At a bar 1km from Yokohama stadium. It is stonking hot and sunny. Lucky the beer is cold

@R-L said in Hawt discussion (lots of PG13 gifs/pics):

I do miss baron though....

Use a bigger scope

@MN5 said in The Folau Factor:

@Rembrandt said in The Folau Factor:

Should have just glassed his girlfriend or shat in a hallway, pissed in his own mouth or maybe some sort of gang sexcapade like those much better role models out there.

In other words a typical Saturdee night when Craig Gower was playing

Foolah didn't mention bestiality. So Mitchell Pearce is in the clear right?

@kiwipie said in EPL 2020/2021:

@mariner4life said in EPL 2020/2021:

@kiwipie said in EPL 2020/2021:

I think the main reason the ESL will fail at this point is that they have pretty much just made it up on the spot without really working out the details.

see, that can't be right. there is no way they have done this without having plans in place. these guys aren't that dumb

but they might be that arrogant i guess.

Discussion has been under way for a while but there has definitely been a rush by certain parties to announce it and declare it is happening as soon as possible.

The outcome will be fascinating. But these clubs are among the biggest, most famous, richest, most storied clubs in the world. They either think the breakaway can work or they are gambling on the current power structure making serious concessions

https://stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/124891012/fasttracked-residency-for-sportsmans-partner-is-just-not-cricket

Is this guy being deliberately obtuse or does he really think life is fair?

@mariner4life said in EPL 2020/2021:

@kiwipie said in EPL 2020/2021:

I think the main reason the ESL will fail at this point is that they have pretty much just made it up on the spot without really working out the details.

see, that can't be right. there is no way they have done this without having plans in place. these guys aren't that dumb

but they might be that arrogant i guess.

Where money is concerned, I'm sure they have done all of their homework

@dogmeat said in EPL 2020/2021:

@canefan FA Cup not European

Plus they were the 3rd club to do it after Preston and Villa - both in 19th Century

Ah thanks for clearing up. Back when winning the FAC was a big deal. We were the first English team to win the European Cup though IIRC

@kiwiwomble said in EPL 2020/2021:

@canefan said in EPL 2020/2021:

@kiwiwomble said in EPL 2020/2021:

@canefan yeah, but those global mech sales started with these teams being the popular ones to follow, not everyone buying those shirts are hard out fans watching every game etc

Those teams are popular because of one thing. Success. I don't remember people wearing Chelsea jerseys in my childhood, until Roman bought them and they won lots. ManU were set during the Busby years and were enhanced by the class of 92. Real Madrid and Barca, enough said. Same goes for Juve and the Milan teams. Liverpool were the biggest team of the 1980s and have won stuff lately. Arsenal were one of the teams of the 90s. Spurs are the lucky ones, having not won big since the 60s

whats tottenham won? they're 100% just a "cool" club to follow

in general you're right...but that success you talk about was spread over several comps, EPL, FA Cup, league cup, community shield, champions league, Europa League....how long can they live on the legacy of success if they were to be excluded from some or all of those and only be competing for one

First English team to win the European Cup and league double. Since then? A few FA cups and a UEFA cup winners cup in the early 80s. Like I said we are lucky to be invited, I assume because of late we have done quite well. But more crucial is our new stadium

@mariner4life said in EPL 2020/2021:

@dogmeat said in EPL 2020/2021:

Sure the American owners have a hard on for the NBA model but the NBA is the pinnacle of that sport. For football that is still the international game. Is Kane really going to abandon England and the World Cup for a few more million he doesn't really need?

I'm not sure that's true. There is still the romantic side of representing your country, but i get the impression for the fans and the vast majority of players, Club comes first.

Snap

@dogmeat said in EPL 2020/2021:

@bovidae No relegation in 2021.

If UEFA and FIFA don't blink then the breakaway clubs have a problem.

Sure the American owners have a hard on for the NBA model but the NBA is the pinnacle of that sport. For football that is still the international game. Is Kane really going to abandon England and the World Cup for a few more million he doesn't really need?

Thank God footballs governing bodies are squeaky clean and always act in the best interests of the game....

TV is the key. Has the breakaway comp got a TV deal. How much will the various national leagues have to give back to broadcasters if 'the big 12' aren't participating?

Interestingly the general consensus among Spurs supporters on online blogs (can only assume most club supporters agree) I read don't see international football as the pinnacle, in fact they see it as a nuisance that gets in the way of club competition. Of course that might change in England if they ever manage to win a major international tournament...

@kiwiwomble said in EPL 2020/2021:

@canefan yeah, but those global mech sales started with these teams being the popular ones to follow, not everyone buying those shirts are hard out fans watching every game etc

Those teams are popular because of one thing. Success. I don't remember people wearing Chelsea jerseys in my childhood, until Roman bought them and they won lots. ManU were set during the Busby years and were enhanced by the class of 92. Real Madrid and Barca, enough said. Same goes for Juve and the Milan teams. Liverpool were the biggest team of the 1980s and have won stuff lately. Arsenal were one of the teams of the 90s. Spurs are the lucky ones, having not won big since the 60s

@kiwimurph said in NFL Season 2020/21:

@mariner4life That's basically Alex Smith's first 6 years in the league to a tee.

We will never know how Aaron Rodgers would have gone if the 8ers actually picked him. I think they did him a favour passing on him

@mariner4life said in NFL Season 2020/21:

@cyclops i feel really sorry for a lot of these top QB prospects. They come out of College, get drafted by dogshit teams who are generally dogshit for a reason. They have enormous and immediate pressure to turn the entire place around by themselves. And they are supposed to do this with a paper thin o-line, receivers who can't get separation, and a coaching staff who don't have a lot of a clue.

Then, when for mysterious reason they don't start winning games, they get traded with the word "bust" next to their names, as you say with a bunch of bad habits that come from getting your ass beat week after week.

The same shit side drafts the next unicorn, and the cycle starts again.

The 9ers QB selection will not have those concerns. He will have a very good QB centric coach in Shanahan, and the luxury of sitting and learning behind Jimmy G. Jones feels like the least desirable option on the surface. They will take him if Shanahan values his system over the natural athletic ability of the player